Driven by animosity, I sped down the road twenty miles above speed limit until I reached Tommy's familiar little house. Angrily, I stepped out of the car and slammed the door shut behind me. I stalked up to Tommy's doorway and walked in without bothering to knock. Tommy was sitting behind his drums and experimenting with a new tune. When he saw me, he smiled widely and greeted me, "Hi Amy! I wasn't expecting to see you here. What a nice surprise! What's up?"
I frowned at Tommy and replied, "I think you know exactly 'what's up', Tommy." Tommy took one look at my face and bit his lip nervously, "Uh, why don't you sit down on the couch and tell me about it." I perched on the edge of Tommy's fraying couch and replied, "You're the reason Mick broke up with me, Tommy."
"Oh that," Tommy answered in a dismissive voice. "Sorry, Amy. But really, it was for the best." The way Tommy dismissed the subject immediately pissed me off. It was as if could care less if he had hurt me at all by telling Mick about my encounter with Axl. Infuriated, I shot back, "You don't give a shit about my love life, do you Tommy? Couldn't you just have kept your fucking mouth shut? I trusted you and you betrayed my secrets and lost me my boyfriend. How could you?"
Tommy finally looked repentant. In an apologetic tone, he said, "I'm sorry, Ames. I truly am. Mick asked me if anything went on between the two of you one night when I had been drinking and it just sort of popped out of my mouth. Like I said, I never meant for it to hurt you. But you weren't happy with Mick anyways, so maybe I was doing you a favor."
"I wouldn't go that far," I exclaimed dubiously, "But how could you tell that I wasn't happy with Mick, Tommy? Everyone's been telling me that. Mick did, Axl did, and now you did too. How can people tell? I honestly thought I was happy with Mick for a while." Tommy tried to suppress a smile, "You don't keep your emotions hidden very well, Amy. It's not one of your talents. Everyone knew you were flirting with Axl that night at the Mirage. Ever since then, you hadn't acted the same way towards Mick. It was almost as if you had lost interest in him. I know it sounds harsh, but it is true."
"Oh my god," I gasped. I had never realized that I had treated Mick badly. But now that Tommy brought it up, I remembered avoiding him ever since we had gotten back from Vegas. I had canceled several of our dates and made up excuses for not being able to go. Suddenly, I felt terrible, "You're right, Tommy. God, I feel so bad now. Why do I always make a mess out of everything? At this rate, I'm never going to find a lover."
"You'll find someone. You're just in too much of a hurry and you're trying way to hard to make relationships work. Why don't you just be single for a while and wait for someone to come to you?" Tommy suggested reasonably. Tommy's plan definitely made sense. I had spent most of my life chasing after guys. It probably would be easier to let a guy come to me first. But what if no guys ever came to me? What if I was single for the rest of my life? I shuddered at that thought.
"I suppose I could do that..." I trailed off, considering the idea. Then at a second thought, I added, "But I've already found the right guy." Tommy raised his eyebrows curiously, "Who is it? Oh wait, don't tell me. It's Axl, isn't it?" Blushing furiously, I shrugged, "Maybe. Why do none of you guys like Axl though? Vince acts like he's a murder or something."
Tommy paused as if thinking through his answer, "Well...Axl isn't exactly the friendliest person on the planet. He needs his space and he's got a terrible temper. It's not that I hold anything against him, but I definitely think you can do better. There are a lot of kinder and less temperamental guys out there."
I opened my mouth to protest, but Tommy cut me off before I could start, "You don't need to defend him, Amy. That's just my opinion. If you still want him, then that's fine. I'm just saying that he's gonna be pretty hard to win over. He's not your average guy." I had known from the beginning that Axl was not the "average guy." I loved everything about him from the way he held himself to his laid back attitude and easy smile. Axl guarded himself inside a shell, but once you broke through that shell, you met the most wonderful man you could ever expect to meet.
Smiling dreamily at the thought of him, I said, "Axl's not normal and that's why I like him." Tommy shrugged at me, "Well, it's your decision. If you want him that bad, go and make him yours. You're planning to meet him at the San Francisco show, aren't you?" I frowned and answered, "Not exactly. I'm not planning to meet him, we just thought that maybe we'd happen to run into each other there. But it's not like we made specific plans. I wish we had though. There's a chance I might not be able to find him backstage either." My mood decreased suddenly at this thought.
"Aw, cheer up!" Tommy exclaimed as he reached over and squeezed my shoulder. "I'll help you find him at the show, all right?" I glanced up at Tommy with surprise, "Really?" It wasn't like Tommy to agree to hunt down my crush for me at a big show like the one that was going to be held in San Francisco.
Tommy smiled back at me, "Sure. Well, on one condition. You've gotta promise me that you aren't mad at me for telling Mick about you and Axl." I rolled my eyes and shrugged, "Fine." Tommy stood back up and walked back over to his drum set, "I've really gotta practice this song, Ames. You can stay and listen if you want, but I won't be able to talk to you."
"That's okay," I replied as I got up and headed towards the door, "I should probably get going anyways. I'm sorry for being so rude earlier. I was just really pissed off." Tommy nodded understandingly, "Yeah, I understand. Don't worry about it. Bye!" I pulled open the wooden door and crossed the driveway back to my jetta.
Now that I had released all my anger, I was feeling much better. As a matter of fact, I was feeling elated. I couldn't wait for the San Francisco concert. No matter how I tried, I couldn't get my mind off of Axl. Maybe he really was the right guy for me after all. Too bad I didn't know about how badly the San Francisco show was going to end up.

After what seemed like an eternity of waiting, the day before the big show finally came. I had finished my packing and was waiting in my living room for Nikki to come pick me up. Tommy, Vince, Mick, and Linda had already traveled to San Fransisco yesterday. Nikki and I didn't see the point in being in San Francisco two days earlier so we had decided to drive separately from the rest of the Crue. After only a few minutes of sitting bored on the couch, a loud knocking came from the door.
Without waiting for me to open the door, Nikki stuck his head inside the door and gave me one of his big grins, "Ready to go, Amy?" I leaped up from the couch and ran to the door, "Sure am!" At the door I paused and snatched up my traveling bag. I had done my best to pack light so I won't have to be bothered with a heavy suitcase during the trip. Hopefully, I hadn't forgotten anything too important. With my bag slung over my shoulder, I followed Nikki outside to his shiny Porsche and was about to climb in the back when Nikki called my name.
"Hey Amy, why don't you sit in the front with me? Lita's not coming so it's just gonna be us," Nikki explained from the driver's seat. Mildly surprised that Lita wasn't coming, I plopped by bag into the trunk and hopped into the passenger seat next to him. As we drove off, I turned to Nikki and questioned him about Lita, "So Nikki, where's Lita? This is the first show she hasn't been at. You guys didn't break up or something, did you?"
Nikki shook his head without looking at me, "Nah. I just wanted to be at this show alone because of...never mind." I immediately pressed on with the subject. It was easy to tell that Nikki was hiding something from me and I was going to find out what it was.
"Because of what, Nikki?" I prodded interestedly. Nikki stiffened in his seat and turned up the music as if trying to zone out my voice. I rolled my eyes; Nikki wasn't going to get away without answering my question. I reached over and turned the music back down again, "Okay, Nikki, what's up? I'm probably gonna find out eventually, so why don't you tell me what's going on?"
Nikki sighed loudly, "It's just that we had some trouble at the show in Scottsdale, Arizona. But it's okay, Lita will get over it sooner or later. Can we talk about something else now?" Unfortunately, I had not gone to the show in Scottsdale, so I had no idea what had gone on at that show. Figuring that it was better not to harp on the subject any longer, I shrugged, "Okay, fine."
Nikki exhaled with relief and quickly changed the subject, "So Amy, what's been going on with you and Mick?" I frowned at Nikki; he was always so interested in my love life. I had already discussed my relationship with Mick to about four different people, I wasn't about to repeat the story to Nikki for a fifth time.
"Mick and I broke up," I answered succinctly. "I don't really want to talk about it." Nikki nodded understandingly and we drove for about an hour in complete silence. After the hour, I was so bored that I decided to bring the subject of the concert in Scottsdale back up. In a wheedling voice, I asked, "So what trouble was there in Scottsdale?"
Nikki tossed me an exasperated look, "You sure don't let things go, do you? Fine, I'll tell you, but you'd better shut up after this. Alright?" I nodded eagerly. Nikki was going to tell me the story! Nikki's cheeks flushed slightly as he started to tell me about the performance, "Well, we had just finished our performance and Kiss was starting off their show with the song 'Rock n Roll All Nite." Anyways, Tommy and I were just hanging out behind one of the drum kits when we met Eric's girlfriend. And...uh...we got caught fucking her behind the drum kits."
I slapped myself on my forehead. Nikki and Tommy just could not resist seductive girls! In a dubious voice, I continued, "So who exactly caught you?" Nikki's usually pale cheeks reddened even more, "Um...Eric did."
"Oh god, Nikki!" I exclaimed in horror. "That's just terrible! How come you guys always end up accusing me of cheating and yet you're the real criminals?" Nikki kept his mouth shut and looked at the floor guiltily. Another thought popped into my head, "How did Eric take it? Is he really upset at you?"
Nikki nodded fervently, "Hell, yes! I have never seen a guy that fucking angry before! Actually, all of Kiss hates us now." My heart sank; everyone from Kiss had seemed so nice. Vinnie had even gone out of his way to talk to me and now Nikki had ruined the whole thing because he couldn't resist having sex with Eric's girl.
"Geez, Nikki!" I blurted out in disgust, "You just don't have one drop of self control, do you? Now all of Kiss is going to hate me too. I liked Kiss; they were really nice people." Nikki gave me a small, apologetic smile, "I'm sorry, Amy. I don't think they'll be angry at you though. You weren't even there when the event took place."
I shrugged at Nikki started to pull into a parking lot, "Hm, I guess we'll find out pretty soon. Is this the hotel we're staying at?" Nikki nodded as he carefully parked his Porsche in the parking spot closest to the front of the hotel. I asked my next question rather hesitantly, "Um...Nikki?"
"Yeah?" Nikki asked as we popped out of the car and started unpacking our luggage from the trunk. As I swung my little traveling bag over my shoulder, I questioned, "Is Kiss staying at this hotel too?" Nikki gulped nervously, "I have no idea. I hope not though. That would be...awkward." The two of us walked through the door and into the hotel lobby.
"Speak of the devil..." Nikki murmured under his breath. To my shock, the four members of Kiss were standing at the desk at the end of the room getting their room keys. I resisted the urge to run the other way so I wouldn't have to face them. But really, I shouldn't be feeling so anxious around them. After all, I hadn't done anything wrong. Nikki and Tommy were the ones that had offended them. But I was associated with Crue, so maybe they would treat me in the same way they were treating Nikki.
At that moment, Paul Stanley turned around and looked directly at us. I stood frozen to the spot as if I had been caught in the middle of a crime. Nikki gave my hand a little squeeze and pulled me across the room with him. Paul's eyes narrowed as he watched Nikki. He turned and whispered something in Vinnie's ear. Before I knew it, all four Kiss members had turned around and were watching us with disgust. I flinched under their condescending gazes and attempted to hide behind Nikki. For the first time ever, I thanked god I was so short and Nikki was so tall!
A distorted tension seemed to engulf the room as Nikki approached the desk at the end of the room. The Kiss members were about to turn away, when Vinnie caught a glimpse of me. To my horror, he stopped and called out in a cheerful voice, "Why, is that you, Amy? We hadn't seen you at the last few shows so we weren't sure if you were still traveling with Crue or not."
In a small voice, I replied, "Yeah, I'm still traveling with Crue." I observed each of the Kiss member's face's to see how they were reacting to me. Vinnie was grinning widely, Paul and Gene were giving me friendly looks, and Eric's face remained impassive. That was good; at least none of them were scowling at me.
"Well, it's good to see you again!" Vinnie exclaimed excitedly. "I guess we'll see you at the show tomorrow, then?" I nodded, "Yeah, of course. Good luck you guys!" All the members, except Eric, thanked me graciously and then turned and strode off in the direction of the elevator. I let out a long breath of relief as soon as they had disappeared. They didn't seem to be too angry at me after all! Well, Eric seemed a little moody, but that was understandable under the circumstances.
Nikki quickly received our room keys from the front desk, and then we set off towards the elevator as well. I whistled a little tune under my breath happily as we ambled along. Nikki gave me a confused sort of smile and asked, "What are you so happy about? I don't even remember the last time I've heard you whistle before."
I stopped whistling as we stepped into the elevator and shrugged, "I dunno. I guess I'm just relieved that the Kiss members don't seem to angry at me." As we rode up the elevator, Nikki turned to me slyly, "Even if they were angry with you, would it really matter? It's not like you know them very well." Nikki scratched his chin thoughtful than added, "Unless you like one of them, of course. That would most certainly explain it."
My face reddened as we reached the floor of our hotel room and exited the elevator. Why was Nikki always assuming that I was in love with someone? Truthfully, I replied, "Of course I'm not in love with anyone of them. God, Nikki, why do you always think I'm in love? My love life seems to be the only thing you want to talk about these days!"
Nikki avoided my eye and didn't answer the question. As we walked along the hallway, I considered my theory. It did seem true. After all, Nikki was always asking about my boyfriends or who I was in love with. Was there a small possibility that Nikki was still interested in me? Deep in the bottom of my heart, I loved Nikki, but I didn't want to be his girlfriend. After all, he had just cheated on Lita. The last thing I needed was for someone to go cheating on me and break my heart.
Nikki turned towards a doorway to our left and commented, "These are gonna be our rooms. Who were you planning on rooming with? Tommy, I'm guessing?" I had opened my mouth to speak, but never got the words out. At that moment, footsteps sounded from behind us and a familiar voice called out, "Hey, is that you, Amy?"

I was surprised that someone here would know me. After all, I had never been to San Francisco. Before I had met the Crue, I had never been much of a traveler. As a matter of fact, I would always do my best to stay home when my parents went on vacation. Trying to figure out who had called out my name, I spun around and said, "Hey?"
Immediately, a shiver went down my spine as I turned to see Axl Rose and an unfamiliar guy striding down the hallway towards us. The two of them stopped when they reached where Nikki and I stood next to our hotel room door. Even in jeans and a simple red shirt, Axl looked sexier than ever. The man next to him had long black hair and matching black eyes. He had a quick smile and reminded me slightly of Nikki.
Without even bothering to greet Nikki, Axl casually introduced me to his friend, "Amy, this is my best bud, Izzy Stradlin. We've known each other since we were fourteen. Izzy, this is Amy. She travels around with Motley Crue." Izzy gave me a big smile that exposed all his perfectly white teeth, "Any friend of Axl's is a friend of mine. It's nice meeting you."
A funny sensation formed in my blood as I reached forward and shook Izzy's hand. I couldn't quite name the sensation. It wasn't attraction like I felt towards Axl; it was something completely different. Remembering my manners, I quickly replied, "Hey Izzy. It's good to meet you too." Suddenly, I felt someone sling an arm rather protectively over my shoulders.
I twisted around to see Nikki eying Izzy and Axl suspiciously. I felt kind of annoyed at Nikki. Right now would be a perfect time for him to disappear so I get be alone with Axl. Well, not quite alone as Izzy was around. But still, why did Nikki have to stand over my shoulder and listen to ever single word I said?
Axl raised an eyebrow at Nikki as if to ask, "What's your problem?" Before Axl and Izzy could leave, I gave Nikki a meaningful look and suggested, "Why don't you go check out our rooms? And yes, I'll stay with Tommy." Without taking his eyes off Axl and Izzy, Nikki replied, "Are you sure, Amy? I don't mind waiting for you."
Getting really frustrated at this point, I said sharply, "No, I don't mind! I wouldn't have told you to go check out the rooms if I minded now, would I have?" Nikki reluctantly tore his gaze off of Izzy and Axl and gave me one of the room keys, "Alright then. See you later then, Amy." Finally, Nikki unlocked the room to our right and disappeared through it.
As soon as Nikki had left, Izzy burst out laughing. I shifted from foot to foot, unsure if Izzy was laughing at me or not. Before it became too awkward, Axl slapped Izzy on the back and rolled his eyes, "Maybe you could tell us what you're laughing at, Iz?"
Izzy tried to muffle his laughs. Finally, he responded with a big grin, "It's just that Amy has a pretty protective boyfriend. He looked like he was gonna shoot me if I laid a hand on her." Axl's big brown eyes widened with surprise and he commented, "Hm. I didn't know Nikki was your boyfriend, Amy. Did you hook up with him after Mick?"
Izzy's eyes sparkled mischievously and he inquired, "Mick? Who's this Mick person?" I couldn't help but laugh at Izzy's expression. I decided I liked Izzy. He seemed like a pretty nice guy with a unique personality. Quickly, I tried to explain the situation to Axl, "Nah, Nikki's not my boyfriend. I haven't had a boyfriend since Mick. Nikki's always been a little too protective of me. We've been best friends for a while now. I guess he feels in charge of me sometimes."
"I think he likes you more than as just a friend," Izzy chortled. "You still haven't told me who Mick is yet." I really had no idea why Izzy wanted to know about Mick. Everyone seemed to want to know about my relationships today for some unknown reason. Rather mystified, I explained, "Mick's the guitarist for Motley Crue. And I guess he was my ex-boyfriend too." Izzy's grin vanished and a sympathetic expression replaced it, "Aw, I'm sorry. I bet you'll find another boyfriend easily though. It's not hard to get laid in California...especially at shows like the one tomorrow night."
I blushed and said nothing. Luckily, Axl came to the rescue and changed the subject, "God, Izzy, do you really need to know the status of every pretty girl here? All you've been talking about the whole way here has been girls!" Izzy smiled sneakily, "Aw, come on, Axl! You can't honestly tell me that you don't have any interest in girls!" My heart had lifted at Axl's last sentence. He had actually called me pretty! If only I done my makeup more carefully earlier this morning...
Axl shrugged nonchalantly and turned back to me, "So Amy, Izzy and I are going out for dinner in a few hours. Care to join us? I'm sure Izzy would like it if you came along, right Izzy?" Axl shot a knowing grin at Izzy. It was easy to tell that the two had known each other for a long time. Izzy put a solemn expression on his face and nodded, "Yeah, of course I would. So what do ya say, Amy? I'm sure if would be more fun hanging out with his than the Crue."
I couldn't believe my luck; Axl had actually asked me out! Well, not exactly. He had asked me to dinner, but we wouldn't be alone since Izzy was coming along. But it was most certainly a good first step! Without pausing to think my decision through, I nodded vigorously, "I'd love to join you guys. So what time do you want me to meet you at the hotel lobby?"
Axl rolled up the sleeve of his faded red shirt and glanced at his watch, "I dunno...maybe around seven or so? Iz and I aren't in any hurry and I'm guessing you're gonna want to get settled in before we leave."
"That sounds great!" I replied excitedly. "See you guys then!" The corner of Axl's mouth turned upwards into a lopsided smile as he waved to me. Halfway down the hallway, Izzy called over his shoulder, "Hey Amy, did I hear you were staying with someone called Tommy?" Before I had a chance to reply, Axl exclaimed, "What is this, the Spanish Inquisition? Just let the girl have some peace!" I laughed to myself as Izzy and Axl disappeared into the elevator on the opposite side of the room. My day was going perfectly so far! The only hard part was going to be trying to show Axl my affections for him without being too audacious.
I slid my newly acquired room key through the lock on the door next to Nikki's. It swung open with ease. With a spring in my step, I popped inside and let the door fall shut behind me. Tommy was standing at the window, looking down at the city below. Without a care in the world, I threw my bag on the bed nearest me and joined Tommy at the window.
"Hey there, Tommy!" I greeted ecstatically. "How was your trip?" Tommy glanced away from the window to look me over. In an emotionless tone, he replied, "It was fine I suppose. And yours?" Immediately, I could tell something was wrong. Tommy's hair was standing up in every direction, his eyes were dark, and his skin was tinged a sickly green color.
"God, what the hell happened to you, Tommy?" I asked in shock. Tommy walked away from the window and sank down on the corner of the bed and buried his face in his hands, "Nothing really. Vince convinced me to go to a strip club with him though last night and..." Tommy trailed off. I helped him finish the sentence, "And you got really drunken and now you're suffering the consequences of a really bad hangover?"
Tommy nodded. I sank down on the bed next to him and patted his hand pityingly, "I'm sorry, Tommy. You've gotta learn that you can't give in to Vince all the time though. Vince can be persuasive, but he's only gonna get you into trouble. Just take the situation with him and Beth Lynn for example."
Tommy removed his head from his hands to look at me curiously, "What do you mean? I didn't know there was anything going on between Vince and Beth Lynn." Oops, I had made an error there. I was probably the only one who knew about the situation with Beth and Vince. I explained, "Um, Beth's staying at my house right now because Vince was abusing here."
Tommy's eyebrow raised in shock, "Oh, I didn't know it had gotten that bad. Poor Beth." I nodded, but even the thought of Beth Lynn home alone couldn't decrease my mood. I was going on a date with Axl tonight! Tommy took a little closer look at me and asked, "Why, you seem pretty happy today, Ames. What's going on?"
"Oh nothing," I replied. There really wasn't any need to tell Tommy about my date with Axl. Unfortunately, Tommy was way too good at guessing what was going on because his next sentence was, "So tell me, what are your plans for tonight? Are you hanging out here with me or do you already have plans with someone?"
I rolled my eyes at Tommy, "God, you are such an ass sometimes, Tommy! How the hell do you read my mind like that?" Tommy shrugged with a grin of satisfaction on his face, "Because I'm really smart? Just kidding, it's because I know you so well. I can always tell when something good has happend to you. So tell me about your plans!"
"Well," I started, "I met Axl and Izzy at the hotel earlier. And...Axl invited me out to dinner tonight." Tommy's eyes widened, "Oh my god, maybe he does like you after all!" I frowned slightly at him, "Why do you sound so surprised? Am I really unlikeable or ugly or something?" My immediate instinct was to go check my reflection in the mirror to make sure I looked okay.
Tommy grabbed my hand as I went to check my makeup in the bathroom and pulled me back down next to him on the the lumpy bed, "No, not at all, Amy! You are so paranoid sometimes. Like I've told you before, Axl has a strange personality. It's hard for me to tell if he'd be interested in girls or not. But apparently he is if he invited you out to dinner. So is it just gonna be you two going?"
"Nah," I shook my head, "Izzy is coming too." Tommy nodded meditatively, "I see. So tell me about Izzy. What's he like?" Suddenly, Tommy's face turned a deeper shade of green and he shot up from the bed and tore off towards the bathroom, "Be right back." I nodded as Tommy zipped inside the bathroom and slammed the door behind him.
Moments later, I could hear sound of liquid splattering all over. There was no doubt in my mind that Tommy was emptying his stomach. Tommy really needed to learn to quit getting drunk everytime he went to a club or bar. The last thing I wanted was for Tommy to become an drug addict while we were going on the tours.
About ten minutes later, Tommy emerged from the bathroom and slowly made his way back over to the bed with an apologetic expression on his face, "Sorry about that, Amy. I swear I will never get drunk again!" I gave Tommy an incredulous look, "For some reason, I don't believe that!" Tommy gave me a little smile, "Neither do I actually." We laughed together for a moment before the thought of the Kiss incident popped into my mind.
"Hey Tommy," I prompted offhandedly, "Nikki was telling me about the show in Scottsdale Arizona." Tommy looked at me in confusion, "Okay. Why are you telling me this?" Then comprehension dawned on him and his green face turned slightly pink, "Oh...I see why now." I nodded, "Um hm. Was that true? Did you actually have sex with Eric's girlfriend?"
"Uh...yeah," Tommy confessed guiltily. "I didn't mean to...it just sorta happened. The members from Kiss aren't being mean to you or anything, are they?" I shook my head, "Nah, they're fine. But please, try to have some self control, okay Tommy?" Tommy nodded, "Okay, okay. I already said I was sorry."
Decided to drop the subject, I opened my traveling bag to search for something suitable to wear to dinner tonight with Izzy and Axl. After dumping the entire contents of my bag onto my bed, I rummaged around to find a nice dress. Unfortunately, I had only packed two dresses. One was a silk dress the shade of dark green with spaghetti straps. The second dress was strapless and shimmered in the light. I held the two dresses up for Tommy to look at and asked, "Hey, Tommy, what dress do you think would look better on me tonight?"
Tommy studied each dress carefully before replying, "I think green is a better color on you although I like the shimmery red one. So go with the green one." I selected the jade dress, picked up my curling irons, and tromped over to the bathroom with my hands full, "Thanks for your help, Tommy. I'm gonna go get ready now."
I locked the door behind me after entering the bathroom and changed out of my casual miniskirt and tank top. The dress fit perfectly. It was definitely a good choice for tonight. It had a sleek look to it, but it wasn't too revealing. After letting the curling irons heat up for five minutes, I redid my hair so it hung down my back in long, loose curls. I took a look in the mirror; I looked okay. Feeling fairly confident, I opened the bathroom door and pranced over to Tommy's bed.
"So Tommy, what do you think?" I asked as I spun around for him to make a judgment. Tommy's eyes widened as he looked me up and down. For a moment, he was completely speechless. I was starting to get worried that he thought I looked ugly, so I prompted, "Uh...Tommy?" Tommy finally broke free of his trance and found his voice, "God, Amy, that's the best I've seen you look in a long time. Any guy would be lucky to have you as a date tonight." His eyes sparkled mischievously.
I rolled my eyes and crossed the room to the door, "I already told you that I'm not Axl's date. We're just going as friends or something like that. Anyways, I guess I''ll head downstairs to see if the guys as ready."
"Okay. Bye Amy! Good luck on your date tonight," Tommy replied as I shut the door behind me. I walked slowly down the hallway to the elevator since I was wearing four inch heeled shoes. Normally, I wouldn't bother wearing such high heels, but tonight was special. The heels gave me the extra height I needed so that I didn't seem quite so freakishly short.
After traveling down the elevator, I stepped out in the main lobby and looked around for Axl and Izzy. Before I could get a good look around me, I felt someone tap me on the shoulder. Curious to see who it was, I spun around to find myself face to face with Vince. Vince was ogling me with wide eyes, "Don't you look sexy tonight! Why don't you come down to the club across the street with me? I doubt there's any better looking girl around here than you."
"Thanks for the invitation, Vince, but didn't we end our relationship a while ago?" I reminded him. Vince seemed to forget everything sometimes. All the seemed to go through his mind was sex, drugs, and more sex. Vince frowned at my comment and took my hand into his, "We were just being stupid. C'mon, it'll be fun. We can forget the past and start over, can't we?"
"No, we can't, Vince," I answered firmly. "We've tried that about three or four times before and our relationship never ends up working out. Besides, I already have plans for tonight." Vince raised an eyebrow at me curiously, "Really? Who are you going out with? You better have dumped Mick after he cheated on you..."
How did Vince know that Mick had cheated on me? Did the Crue sit around and discuss my relationships when I wasn't around or something? I narrowed my eyes and said, "I'm just going with some friends. How did you know about Mick and me? I don't recall telling you that he cheated on me." Vince rolled his eyes, "There are no secrets when you live with the Crue, Amy. You really ought to know that by now." Suddenly, he turned suspicious and added, "Tell me who your friends are."
"Uh, Izzy and Axl," I answered nervously. It wasn't a secret anymore that Vince despised Axl. Hopefully he wouldn't respond too badly with me going out with Axl and Izzy. Vince gripped my hand tighter and started yanking me towards the door, "There's no fucking way I'm letting you go out with them. You're coming with me whether you like it or not."
I tried to dig my into the ground to resist Vince, "Geez, you're not my parent, Vince! Let me go!" Vince shook his blonde head resolutely and continued dragging me to the door. Suddenly, I tripped on one of my high-heeled sandals and went toppling to the ground. I landed with a loud crash by Vince's feet. Instead of making sure I was alright, Vince recaptured my hand and hauled me back up to my feet. Luckily, I wasn't hurt at all, but I was furious at Vince.
"Vince, let me go or I'll scream," I threatened angrily. Tonight I didn't want to deal with Vince's shit. He needed to learn that he couldn't always have things his own way. Vince whirled around and hissed in my ear, "You will do as I say, Amy." Vince raised a hand as if to hit me. I gulped and fell limp in his tight grasp. Vince smiled, "That's better. Now be a good girl."
Suddenly, a voice came from behind us, "What's going on here?" Vince quickly let go of my arm and took a few apprehensive steps backwards. Slightly disheveled, I turned around to see who was approaching. A shudder ran down my spine as I turned to see Axl and Izzy sanding right behind me. Axl had folded his arms across his chest and was eying Vince with malice, "What the hell were you doing to her?" Vince, who had been trying to sneak away stealthily without being noticed, stopped in his tracks and glared at Axl, "I'm trying to protect her from bastards like you!"
Daggers lit up in Axl's eyes as he crossed the space between him and Vince in three strides, "You think I would actually hurt her when you're the one who would get drunk tonight and abuse her? Let me tell you something, Vince Neil, rape isn't funny. I can see it in your eyes that you've raped girls before. I expect you to leave Amy alone from now...or else..."
Unable to deny any of Axl's statements, Vince just stood there stupidly looking at his feet in shame. Axl looked Vince up and down and commented, "You and I could fight. Right here and now outside the hotel lobby. What do you say, Vince?" Axl rolled up the sleeves of his old, red flannel shirt and looked at Vince to see his reaction.
Before Vince could get a reply out, Izzy had slung a hand on Axl's shoulder and whispered in his ear, "Not now, Axl. We're going to dinner. Remember?" Reluctantly, Axl backed away from Vince towards the hotel door. Izzy and I followed after him, leaving a stunned Vince staring after us. Just as we reached the door, Axl spun back around and glowered at Vince, "I'm comin' back you know...anytime you wanna fight, just let me know!"
The door swung shut behind us and the three of us climbed into Izzy's banged up looking Ford. Axl seemed too upset at Vince to engage in conversation, so we rode to the restaurant in complete silence. Hopefully, the rest of the night would be better than how it had started out.

Only five minutes later, Axl sped into the parking lot of large, brick building. As soon as we were parked, Axl, Izzy, and I all exited the car. Before entering, Axl stepped over to where I was standing. He put his hands on my shoulders and looked deep into my eyes with concern, "Sorry about Vince, Amy. Is there anything I can do to help you?"
I felt tongue tied as I looked into Axl's big brown stare. Unable to find my voice, I merely shook my head. Axl tossed me a little smile and tucked a loose curl behind my ear, "You do look pretty tonight, girl. Let's go have a good time." With that, Axl gently took my hand and started leading us towards the doorway of the restaurant. Immediately, Izzy's eyes locked onto clasped hands. I could see jealously blazing out of his eyes. There was no doubt in my mind that Izzy wanted a date...possibly even me? But again, who in this world didn't want a date?
"So Axl," Izzy started, "what restaurant are you bring us to?" Axl looked up at the flashing sign above the doorway and replied, "Uh, this is called 'First Crush Restaurant & Bar' by the looks of it." Teasingly, Izzy continued, "Ooo, interesting pick! Any particular reason why you choose a restaurant that had 'First Crush' in it's name?"
Axl gave Izzy an irritated look as we entered the restaurant, "Of course not. Next time you can choose the restaurant if you don't like the names of the ones I choose." As soon as Axl's back was turned, Izzy made a face and replied sarcastically, "I will most certainly do so, Mr. High and Mighty Rose."
Axl lightly punched Izzy on the arm as a waitress let us to the back of the bar, "You can always make me laugh, Iz." In no time, we were seated and were looking through the thick, detailed menus that the waitress had brought us. Izzy cast Axl a devilish glance out of the corner of his eye and stated, "I think this is the first time you've invited a girl to dinner, Axl."
"Maybe it is," Axl shrugged casually without looking up from the menu. Izzy wasn't going to let the subject drop though. He continued, "You know, it's sure been a while since you've dated..." Axl slapped his menu down on the table with annoyance and gave Izzy said in an aggravated tone, "Izzy, what the hell is your point? Yeah, I've dated a few times before, but Amy's just my friend. It is okay to have girls just as friends you know."
Izzy tapped his chin thoughtfully, "You did go out with that Everly girl a few times, didn't you? I don't see how you could have a girl just as a friend though. Well, actually my best friend for a while was a girl, but I fucked her after-" Axl cleared his throat and shot Izzy a disapproving look, "So guys, what do you want to order?"
Izzy and I looked up to see the petite blonde waitress standing silently next to our table. Izzy blushed with embarrassment and stuttered, "Uh...I dunno. Want to get pizza?" Axl shrugged, "If that's what you want. Do you want pizza too, Amy?" I nodded, sometimes it was best to go with the flow.
Axl turned back to the waitress and said, "We'll take a pizza and a bottle of wine." The waitress scribbled down a few notes on her notepad before disappearing as silently as she had come. Izzy followed her with his eyes, "She's a pretty one, isn't she? Too fragile looking though." Axl shook his head and whispered in my ear, "Don't mind Izzy; he's always like this."
I blushed and felt my heart leap as I felt Axl's warm breath on my ear. Izzy acted offended and turned to Axl, "What do you mean, 'Izzy's always like this'? Are you trying to say that's a bad thing?" Axl's eyes twinkled and he answered, "Of course not, I didn't say that now, did I?" Izzy shook his head, "Not exactly."
"There you go then," Axl replied to dismiss ths subject. To our surprise, the waitress was already back with a large pizza and the wine bottle. She set them down carefully on the table and asked us in a high-pitched voice, "Do you need anything else?" Izzy scrutinized her out of the corner of his eye and replied, "Nah, I don't think so. Thanks for the offer though." With that said, the waitress nodded and moved on to the table next to us.
"Iz, come on, you don't need to get laid tonight," Axl leaned across the table and hissed at Izzy. Izzy looked up at Axl with puppy eyes, "You've gotta admit she is a hottie." Axl glanced over at the waitress and turned back to Izzy with exasperation, "God, do whatever you want then, Izzy!" Izzy smiled in satisfaction and poured us all a glass of wine before digging into the pizza.
"So Amy, what do you do for a living?" Izzy initiated after taking a giant mouthful of pizza. Everyone always seemed to ask me this question. I wished I had a real job, something that sounded impressive. Meekly, I replied, "I'm actually still in college. I'm just...erm...taking a break for a while to travel with Crue."
Izzy nodded understandingly, "Yeah, I definitely don't blame you. School was like hell, wasn't it, Axl? The two of us dropped out when we were sixteen. I can still remember the nightmares from it." I sighed with relief that Izzy don't look down on me for not having a job. Hoping to steer the conversation away from me, I asked, "Are you part of a band then, Izzy?"
Izzy shook his head, "Not at the moment. I've jumped around between several in the last few years though. I picked up guitar way back when I was fourteen. It's been my passion ever since then. Axl and I used to practice everyday, do you remember that, Axl?" Axl nodded and smiled in rememberance, "Yeah, how could I not forget those years?"
"I remember when you used to be so shy about singing. Did you ever imagine that you'd be a singer someday?" Izzy asked Axl. Axl took a sip of his wine and shrugged, "I don't imagine the future, but I certainly plan for it. We had made becoming rock stars our goal way back in 8th grade, Iz." Izzy smiled, "Yeah, we never fit in during high school. So Axl, what are your dreams or goals now? Ever plan on finding a girl and getting married or something?"
Axl rolled his eyes and set his wine glass back down on the table with a thud, "My goal right now is to form a new band. I know it sounds crazy, but I'm so fucking tired of putting up with Tracii's shit. And this time, you'll be part of the band. But about the girls, I'm not interested right now. My music comes first. It always has and always will. Why would I give all that up for a girl?"
Izzy threw up his hands in the air, "Because it's human nature maybe? You should listen to all my dreams and future plans..."
Axl threw a hand over Izzy's mouth to shut him up, "No, we don't want to her about all your fantasies of sexy girls. I've heard this story way too many times before." Axl's eyes traveled over the table as he tried to find a diversion to distract Izzy. His eyes came to rest on me, "You aren't eating, Amy. Not hungry?"
I looked down at my plate at the piece of pizza I had selected. I had taken one bite. Food just no longer had any appeal to me. All it did was make me fat. That was something I certainly didn't want. With a gracious smile, I replied, "Not really. I don't eat much usually." Axl eyed my piece of pizza and then moved his gaze up to my face, "You've gotta eat, girl. Don't come cryin' to me if you stave yourself." I rolled my eyes, "Of course I'm not gonna starve myself."
Izzy's eyes were traveling up and down my body with a new look in them, "Oh, you're one of those anorexic girls who tries to starve themselves, aren't you? You should be careful, Amy. Most girls don't think they're killing themselves until it's too late. Besides, guys don't like stick girls because then you have to be careful not to crush them during sex and all, right Axl?"
Axl gave Izzy a casual smile, "How would I know? I don't know much about sex." Izzy poured more wine into Axl's glass and said in a teasing voice, "You should know a lot about it. That's all you sing about with LA Guns. Besides, we all know you've fucked girls before." Axl firmly capped the wine bottle and pulled it away from Izzy, "I think you've had enough alcohol for one night. You never told me what you thought of my suggestion earlier."
Izzy looked puzzled, "What suggestion? I don't remember you suggesting anything." Axl sighed and repeated his question from earlier, "God, you do not listen when you're drunk. Anyways, I said earlier I wanted to start a new band to get away from Tracii. What do you think? You and I could be in it together..."
Izzy contemplated the idea for a few moments before answering, "Why, that sounds like a great idea. But how exactly do you plan on starting this band? So far, you only have you and me. And you have no money." When Izzy thought Axl wasn't looking, he covertly stole the wine bottle back and dragged it across the table next to him.
"I dunno how to plan the band yet..." Axl replied. "I just wanted to know if you'd want to join if I started it." Seeing that Izzy had retrieved the wine bottle, Axl snatched it up and planted it firmly on the table next to him. Izzy gave Axl a pitiful glance, "Aw, c'mon! You're no fun tonight. You usually let me get high. Hey, I remember that one time when you got drunk and you starting singing and-" Axl's smile disappeared and he gave his a warning look, "Stop. Nobody needs to hear about that."
Izzy's eyes sparkled as he continued to aggravate Axl, "I could tell Amy all about it if you refuse to give me that bottle back." Axl's lips formed a thin line as he looked from Izzy to me and then to the wine bottle. He shook his head and finally gave in to Izzy, "Alright, you win!" Axl slid the bottle back towards Izzy.
Izzy immediately uncapped it and took a long swig. He was gazing at something far off in the distance. I turned around to see what Izzy was glancing at. It was the young, blonde waitress. That wasn't a surprise. I still wanted to know what had happened the time when Axl had gotten drunk though. Once you had sparked my curiosity, it was impossible to put the fire out.
In my sweetest tone, I turned back to Izzy and asked, "Can't you tell me what happened, Izzy? I'm dying to know now." Axl gave me a rather nervous smile and replied, "Really, Amy, you don't want to know." Sulking, I protested, "Yes, I do want to know! Why would I have asked you if I didn't want to know?"
Axl didn't get a chance to reply because Izzy had slid his chair back with an earsplitting squeak and was now standing up. Axl made a wild attempt to grab Izzy's hand, "Damnit! All you can think about is sex with that waitress!" Izzy gave Axl a drunken grin and crossed the floor to where the waitress was standing.
"Sorry about Izzy," Axl gave me an apologetic smile. "He's usually quite nice, but god, he most certainly loves his women!" I grinned backed at Axl, "Oh, he's fine. At least he doesn't rape like Vince." Axl's eyes darkened and he nodded thoughtfully. Suddenly, raucous laughter sounded from behind us.
I turned to see who the intruder was. To my surprise, it was none other than Vince with a gorgeous, curly-haired girl. Luckily, Vince didn't notice us and proceeded to walk to the door with the girl trailing after him. Axl's eyes followed Vince until he had left the building. As I tried to think of something to say, Izzy returned to the table...bringing the waitress with him.
It was as if the waitress was a completely different girl. Her emotionless expression was now replaced by a flirtatious grin and she was giggled slightly as Izzy's hand ran up and down her back. Izzy looked down dreamily at the woman and then turned back to Axl and me, "Guys, can we head back to the hotel now? Sandy's agreed to go with us."
Reluctantly, Axl stood up and extended a hand to me, "Fine." As soon as Sandy and Izzy were out of earshot, Axl cursed under his breath and whispered in my ear, "Remind me to bring my own car next time!" To my delight, Axl didn't let go of my hand as we walked out of the restaurant together. We stepped outside and were greeted by a darkened, star-lit sky.
"What a perfect night," I commented as Axl and I entered the backseats of Izzy's car. Izzy must have heard me because he replied, "A perfect night for what exactly?" Sandy giggled from the front seat and whispered, "I know what." As soon as Izzy had pulled out on the highway, he took his hands away from the wheel and leaned across the seat to kiss Sandy on the lips. What started as one innocent kiss quickly led to a series of them.
"Izzy!" I exclaimed as we just missed running into a small animal on the road, "Watch where you're going, for God's sake! We'll probably end up in a ditch before the night is over at this rate!" Axl touched my hand and gave me a reassuring smile, "Izzy may drive crazy, but don't worry. He's never gotten us into an accident before."
"Well, there's always a first," I commented grumpily. For my sake, Izzy gently pulled away from Sandy and slowed down, "Okay, okay, my eyes are on the road. Happy now?" I nodded with satisfaction, "Yes, much happier." Izzy peered back at me from the front of the vehicle, "I'd do anything to make you happy."
My cheeks automatically turned fire red and Sandy coughed from the front seat. I couldn't decide if Izzy was trying to flirt with me or not. He obviously had Sandy for tonight, but no doubt he would throw her away tomorrow and be looking for a new girl. Would that new girl be me? I thought this over for the rest of the drive until we were safely parked in the hotel parking lot.
"I told you we'd make it safely back," Axl said from next to me. The front car doors slammed open and Izzy and Sandy eagerly jumped out. Without looking backwards, Izzy called over his shoulder, "Well, I'll see you guys tomorrow!" With that, Izzy and Sandy disappeared in the hotel. Axl and I took our time getting out of the car.
As we walked towards the glass doors, I risked asking Axl a question, "Hey Axl? Who's Everly?" Axl stopped for a moment with a quizzical expression on his face, "Everly?" Feeling my face blush, I added, "You know, the Everly girl Izzy was referring to earlier..." I trailed off. Axl looked so handsome in the moonlight. His red shirt was unbuttoned to expose most of his chest, his chestnut-colored hair had fallen into one eye, and he was gazing at me with such an innocent expression.
"Oh, Erin Everly," Axl replied as recognition dawned on him. "She's a good friend of mine. Why do you ask?" I shrugged, blushing, "Oh...I don't know." Axl gave me a knowing smile out of the corner of his eye as we walked hand in hand into the main lobby of the hotel. I partially expected Axl to leave me here, but to my surprise, he continued walking to the elevator with me.
"Why don't I walk you up to your room?" Axl suggested as we clamored inside the elevator. I smiled gratefully at him, "Thanks." The two of us rode the elevator up to my floor in silence. I couldn't stop gazing at Axl's chest. He was much harder to resist than even Vince had been. He was so irresistible...delectable...good enough to eat...
"Are you coming, Amy?" Axl asked, breaking into my meditation. I blinked suddenly. Axl was standing outside of the elevator giving me an impatient look. Quickly, I stepped out of the elevator and joined him, "Yeah, sorry." Axl waved his hand dismissively, "Oh, it's fine. Just didn't want you to fall asleep in the elevator or something." We laughed together as I slid the card key through my door and opened it. I step cheerfully inside and then stopped, completely frozen.
Tommy was lying on top of a red-headed woman on the bed opposite mine. I could hear muffled screams coming from the bed as they fucked each other harder. Axl popped his head inside the door to see why I was rooted to the ground, "Hey Amy, is everything all right in-" Axl stopped as his gaze stopped on the couple in bed that seemed completely oblivious to our presence.
Axl grabbed my arm and pulled me back out of the doorway and slammed the door shut behind him. I turned to him questioningly, "What was that for? I'm gonna have to go in there eventually unless I want to sleep out in the hallway. And that's not happening." Axl frowned, "Obviously. Why don't you come sleep with me instead?" My eyes immediately grew to the size of saucers and I stared at Axl in shock. Quickly recognizing his error, Axl corrected, "Oh god, that came out so wrong. What I meant was, do you want to share my room instead? At least you wouldn't have to listened to all that shit while you're sleeping."
My heart started pounding violently against my chest; Axl Rose was asking me to share his room! Without hesitation, I replied, "That would be really great. Are you sure you don't mind?" Axl shook his head and started pulling me back towards the elevator, "Of course not." The two of us traveled up two more flights before we reached Axl's floor. As we walked down the hallways, a thought occurred to me, "Hey Axl, isn't Izzy sharing a room with you?"
Axl slid a card key through a door to our right and shook his head, "Luckily, not. We were going to, but Izzy wanted his own room. Thank god I didn't protests or else I'd be stuck rooming with him and Sandy right now!" Axl gave a little shudder and held the door to his room open for me.
I walked in almost nervously and glanced around. The room looked exactly like the room Tommy and I were sharing. The only exception was that clothes and other items were spread all over the floor on the far side of the room. Axl shut the door behind us with a creak and apologized, "Sorry 'bout the mess in here."
I shook my head, "Nah, it's fine. I'm a complete slob at home. My mom is always trying to get me to clean my room. It's quite annoying." Axl nodded understandingly, "To hell with parents. I don't see why we need them anyways. All they do is make your life miserable." Axl turned away from me and started rummaging around in his suitcase for some unknown item.
I really wanted to know what had happened with Axl's parents. I had remembered Tracii saying that they had been abusive or something, but I wanted more detail. Before I could get the question out, Axl stated, "You can change if you want. I won't look." I hadn't thought about changing anymore. Ugh, why hadn't I had the sense to grab my flannel pants and old tank top from Tommy's to sleep in? All I had on right now was my green dress, bra, and panties.
As if reading my thoughts, Axl added, "Honestly, I'm not looking. Whatever you do, don't wear that dress to bed though. You'll rip it most likely and then you won't have anything to wear tomorrow." Axl was right; changing was my only option. Nervously, I slipped out of the green dress and quickly pulled the sheets over my body so Axl couldn't see anything too revealing, "Okay, you can look now." Axl turned back around and tossed his red shirt to the ground.
He flopped onto the bed adjacent to mine and rolled onto his side so he could look at me, "You're coming to the show tomorrow night, aren't you?" I nodded. The two of us fell into silence. We just laid on our sides gazing at each other. Finally, I broke the silence, "Axl...what exactly happened when you were younger? You know, with your parents?"
Axl's eyes filled with pain and hurt, "Oh...just a lot of things..." Axl trailed off, leaving me to assume that he didn't want to go into detail. I regretted asking the question and quickly apologized, "You don't have to explain...sorry for asking." Axl shook his head and I noticed his eyes were traveling over the part of my chest that I had left exposed, "Nah, it's okay. I'll tell you someday. Just not right now. We should probably get to bed." Axl rolled over on his other side to check his alarm clock. It read two am.
"Yeah, I guess we should," I agreed reluctantly. "Goodnight Axl." Axl rolled back over to face me and smiled, "'Night, Amy." With that, he reached up and flicked off the light so we were engulfed in darkness. Even if my body was tired, my mind certainly was not. I felt like it would be impossible to fall asleep lying in a bed next to the man of my dreams. However, after only fifteen minutes, I felt my eyelids grow heavy and slowly start to close...

Blinking, I sat up in bed and tried to remember where I was. Bright light was shining in from the window. My eyes wandered the unfamiliar room before it all came rushing back to me. Immediately, I looked over at the bed next to me for Axl. To my disappointment, he was gone! Where the hell had he gone to?
I slipped out of bed and crossed the room to look in the bathroom. There was nobody in there either. Suddenly, I remembered that I was only wearing my bra and panties. Feeling self-conscious, I returned to my bed and slipped the slightly wrinkled green dress back over my head. I would have to go back up to Tommy's room to get ready. After all, my clothes and cosmetics were upstairs. I ran a hand through my hair, hoping I didn't look too bad.
Still miffed about where Axl had disappeared to, I reluctantly walked over to the door and pulled it open. Just as I was about to pull it shut behind me, a note taped on the door caught my eye. I yanked it off the door with a jerk and ripped it open. It was a small note and a few lines written in quick handwriting were on it. It read: Amy, Izzy and I had to get to the show. It starts in two hours and we need to get there early. I'll be waiting for you at the show.
My gaze quickly wandered the hallway for a clock. Unfortunately, none were to be seen. Briskly, I strode down the hallway, popped into the elevator, and hit the button for the floor two flights down. What time was it? Had I slept in really late? As soon as the elevator door opened, I flew outside of it and rushed over to the room Tommy and I were sharing. I prayed that Tommy's girl had left. Nervously, I peeked inside the door. To my surprise, there was nobody in the room at all.
A foreboding feeling was starting to fill me. Anxiously, I glanced over at the clock on Tommy's bed stand. It was eleven! The show started in less than forty-five minutes! How had I let myself sleep so long? Knowing that I had no time to waste, I randomly selected a T-shirt and skirt from my bag and ran into the bathroom. I changed as quickly as I could and looked in the mirror. Luckily, most of my makeup was still intact since I hadn't removed it last night. But my hair looked like a rat's nest. My carefully curled hair from last night was now standing up in every direction and it was frizzing like crazy.
Something definitely had to be done with it! I plugged my flat iron into the outlet nearest me and tapped my foot impatiently as it heated up. As soon as it had reached the temperature I had selected, I ripped it through my hair and then pulled it into a ponytail. True, it wasn't that attractive, but it was definitely better than having a bed head.
Without another glance in the mirror, I rushed out of the hotel room and down the hallways. I decided to take the stairs down to the main lobby so I wouldn't have to deal with the stops the elevator made. Once I was in the main lobby, I turned and ran as fast I could to the parking lot. Thanking god that Nikki had let me keep his car keys, I unlocked his shiny Porsche and revved up the engine. I drove to the show twenty miles over the speed limit. This was my first time ever speeding and I couldn't quite seem to shake off the feeling that someone was watching me.
But nonetheless, I made it to the stadium without hindrance and parked in the parking spot nearest the entrance. I quickly hurried up the stairs the led to the backstage and was immediately immersed in a large crowd of people. My eyes scanned over the crowd in an attempt to find either the LA Guns or the Crue. But of course, none of them were to be seen. Suddenly, I felt a hand on my arm pull me into the corner.
Shocked, I blinked and looked up at my captor. A black and white painted face stared coldly back at me. It was Eric from Kiss. My mind spun anxiously; would could he possible want? I knew he was mad at Nikki and Tommy, but he had acted civil to me at the hotel. Feeling slightly nervous, I greeted Eric in a shaky voice, "Um...hey Eric. What's up?"
"Hi Amy," Eric replied, flashing me a smile with those brilliant white teeth. "Tell me, do any of the Crue members like you?" I was taken off guard by the question. What did he mean by "did any of the Crue members like me"? Had he meant like as in love? Rather confused, I replied, "Well, I think they all like me. We've been friends for a two years now."
"Good," Eric stated, "You'll do me a favor, won't you?" I looked up into his cold, black eyes. Even though he had made his request a question, I could tell there was no denying him. Eric frightened me. Maybe it was all the face paint...or maybe it was something more than me. I tried putting on a friendly smile, "Sure, I guess. What is it that you want?"
Eric's grin stretched even wider, "Oh, you'll see. But I can't tell you now. Go along and find your little friends." Eric released my arm and waved me off. I wandered blindly through the crowd, thinking about the scene with Eric. What could he possible want from me? Something inside me told me that whatever it was he wanted, it was bad.
"Amy!" a voice from my right called my name loudly. "Over here!" I broke out of my reverie and turned towards where the voice had sounded. Vince was standing up to my right and waving frantically at me. His long blonde hair was tousled from the wind and his blue eyes shone with excitement. I couldn't help but feel my mood lift as I wandered over towards the Crue. After all, what could Eric possibly do to me when I was surrounded by the Crue? They would surely protect me from him. Well, at least Nikki would. For once I was actually grateful for Nikki's over protectiveness.
As soon as I approached the group, a torrent of questions spilled out from all four Crue members. I held up a hand to stop them and laughed, "One at a time, guys! I can't answer twenty questions at once!" Vince started, "God, we were so worried about you! We looked all over the hotel for you, but we couldn't find you anywhere!"
Tommy cleared his throat. We all turned to look at him. Blushing furiously, Tommy apologized in a low voice, "Uh...I'm so sorry about last night, Amy. I must've gotten drunk at the bar last night..." Tommy trailed off, unsure of what else to say. I patted his arm reassuringly, "It's fine, Tommy. I don't like seeing you drink so much though. You're lucky that you don't have a hangover today." Tommy nodded guiltily and listened to my chastising with complaint.
"So where the hell were you all last night?" Vince burst out, unable to keep silent any longer. "I had thought Axl had murdered you or something." I gave Vince a withering look, "Geez Vince! Leave Axl alone, will you? I don't see what you all have against him. He's one of the nicest people I've ever met." All the Crue turned to me with surprised expressions.
Feeling a little self conscious with them all looking at me, I asked, "What?" Vince shook his head, "Nothing. But answer my question, will you? You didn't sleep outside in the streets, did you?" I couldn't keep myself from laughing at Vince. He always jumped to conclusions. No girl in their right mind would sleep outside in the streets. Being alone at night in Francisco was bad enough, but being sleeping outside alone in San Francisco brought shivers down my spine.
"Of course I didn't sleep out in the streets, Vince," I replied, rolling my eyes. "I just found another hotel room." Mick, who had remained silent up to this point, finally said guiltily, "Maybe you should room with me next time, Amy." Linda shot him an angry look from his right, but Mick appeared not to notice it.
Unfortunately, the conversation was not yet over. Vince was narrowing his eyes skeptically at me, "What do you mean by you 'found' another hotel room? You don't just 'find' a hotel room. Did you pay for another one or something?" Color started to creep into my cheeks and I shot back, "What's it to you, Vince? It's none of your business what hotel room I stayed in last night."
Nikki raised an eyebrow curiously, "Ooo, Amy's getting defensive! Did you sleep with someone last night?" I was now blushing bright red. I could feel all the Crue members ogling me with wide eyes. Getting rather annoyed, I answered stiffly, "No, I did not sleep with anyone last night! And that's all I'm saying." With one last glare at Vince, I turned and started stalking away from the group. Honestly, why did they feel like they had to watch over me constantly? It wasn't like I was their responsibility!
I had only taken five steps when I heard a voice behind me, "Amy, wait up!" Slowly, I stopped in my tracks until the person who had called my name caught up with me. I was surprised to see it was Nikki. He was looking down curiously at me. He looked really good today with his eyeliner applied perfectly and his hair ruffling in the wind.
"Hi Nikki," I greeted with enthusiasm. I was still upset about the inquisition from earlier and wasn't in a good mood for chatting. Nikki slowed down to walk with me, "Hey. Is it true? That you went out with Axl last night?" I sighed loudly and turned around to face Nikki, "If the only reason you came over here is to ask me about last night, then you can turn right back around and go sit with the Crue." I folded my arms across my chest and scowled at Nikki.
Nikki opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly Vince's voice called out to him from a little ways away, "Nikki, get the hell over here! We're up next!" Nikki frowned and muttered a quick, "Be right back," before whipping around and hurtling towards Vince. Now that the Crue was gone, my next step was to look for Axl and Izzy. They hadn't already played and left the show...right? I tried to reassure myself that Axl wouldn't leave without saying good bye to me first, but even that thought wasn't very reassuring. Anxiously, I shoved my way through the crowd and gazed wildly around for the familiar twosome.
After about fifteen minutes of searching through unfamiliar faces, a chipper voice called my name, "Hi there, Amy!" Vinnie was standing next to me in the crowd with a happy smile on his face. I stopped and turned to talk to Vinnie for a second, "Hey there, Vinnie. You've been doing really great at the shows the last few days. Kiss is definitely the most well known band here."
Vinnie basked in my praise for a few seconds before replying, "Why, thank you, Amy! That's a nice compliment. How have you been?" I thought a minute before answering Vinnie's question. I had been doing well until this morning. Now I was feeling slightly jumpy and worried since I still hadn't found Axl and Izzy. Also, the conversation with Eric earlier was really started to bother me now. Could I trust Vinnie enough to tell him about Eric?
Cautiously, I began, "Honestly, not that well. Erm, Vinnie? I ran into Eric earlier. He asked me for a favor and I told him yes. But when I asked him what favor he wanted, he just said, 'You'll see.' I'm kind of worried, Vinnie. Is Eric planning some weird stunt? Or has he been acting weird lately?"
Vinnie frowned and bit his lip. I could almost see his mind working as he thought about how Eric had been acting the last few days. Finally, Vinnie replied, "I think he's been acting normal. But that is kind of suspicious that he didn't tell you what he wanted. Why don't I go talk to him for you? Then we can figure out what's going on."
I let out a sigh of relief. At least Vinnie could take care of one of my problems. Thankfully, I replied, "That would be really great! I'm probably just being paranoid. By the way, you haven't seen the LA Guns anywhere have you?" Vinnie shook his head without stopping to think, "Nah, I haven't been looking for them. I don't like that band all that much. Why are you asking where they are? You aren't...involved with one of the members from it, are you?"
I stopped myself from scowling at Vinnie. How come it seemed that no matter where I went, I couldn't escape questions about my relationships? Taking a deep breath to calm myself down, I plastered a fake smile on my face, "No, I'm not dating any of them if that's what you're asking. Well, I really should go now. Thanks for talking to Eric for me." With that said, I spun on my heel and dove into the tight crowd once more.
Forty-five minutes later, I still hadn't found the LA Guns. I was thinking about giving up. After all, I had spent a whole hour looking for them. If they were still here, I surely would've found them by now. Dejectedly, I trudged through the crowd without really knowing where I was going. Suddenly, a earsplitting sound of applause sounded from the audience and four figures burst backstage looking elated. I had been so immersed in my mission of searching for the LA Guns that I had completely forgotten that the Crue had been performing. Oops. It had appeared they had done well though with the way the audience was reacting.
When I was only six feet away from them, I opened my mouth to congratulate them. But the words never came out. As if from no where, a figure suddenly appeared before me and smashed me against him. Completely stupefied, I lay limp in his arms and he brough his lips down on mine in a hard, forceful kiss.
If my senses had been working correctly, I would've kicked or screamed. But I was much too stunned to do any of that. After I had broken out of my shock, my eyes immediately traveled up to the stranger's face. Cold, black eyes stared back at me unblinkingly. Eric! This is what he had asked me a favor for. But the question was, why had he wanted this?
It took me a moment before I realized we were making quite a scene. Vince, Mick, and Tommy were staring at us with surprise. But what really hurt was the expression in Nikki's eyes. His gray eyes looked injured and vulnerable as he looked helplessly at Eric and me. From the corner of my eye, another figure caught my eye.
He was striding across the floor confidently with his head held high and was talking loudly to a figure next to him. Without warning, the figure stopped and stared directly at me. My heart started pounding and my blood pressure went up a few notches as I met the familiar eyes. Axl stared at me for a moment in complete shock. The he put on his familiar, expressionless mask and turned back the way he had come.
By this time, I had my sense back. My first impulse was to cry out to Axl and run to him, but first I had to get my lips unglued from Eric's. Using all the power in my body, I jerked backwards and tried to pull away from him. However, no matter how I twisted and turned, Eric's grip on me stayed tight and held me in place.
Luckily, Nikki and the rest of the Crue had finally realized that Eric was forcing me into the embrace. Finally, I figured out what Eric was trying to do. He was trying to get revenge on Tommy and Nikki for having sex with his girlfriend. Apparently, he assumed that the best way to do that would be to hurt me.
Before the Crue could come rescue me, Eric let go of me and whispered in a cold tone, "I'm sorry Amy, but it had to be done." Without another word, he turned and vanished in the crowd as quickly as he had come. It all happened so quickly that I thought for a moment it had been a dream. Had I been just imagined the whole thing?
But then I felt comforting arms around me and concerned voices as the Crue approached. Tommy bent down and searched my eyes, "Amy, are you alright?" Then Vince's voice sounded from my left, "God, why in the world would he do that do you in front of the whole world?" The Nikki, "That bastard...he's gonna pay for this..."
Even though I knew I should stay and and assuage the Crue members that I was alright, my feet seemed to move away from them automatically. Before I could even realize where I was going, I found myself running forward through the crowd as fast as I could. Tommy's head jerked up and he called after me, "Amy! Where are you going?"
I knew I should answer him, but there was time for explaining later. The only thing that mattered to me right now was finding Axl. Through gasping breaths, I finally made it through the crowd and down the stairs that led to the backstage. The scene that met my eyes was devastating. Axl was standing in the middle of the parking lot with a very beautiful girl. She had long, curly brown hair, a sweet smile, and perfect ivory skin. Axl said something to her and she laughed a light, musical laugh.
Petrified, I stood frozen by the stairs. Axl leaned over and kissed the girl's forehead tenderly. They smiled at each other for a moment before the girl cupped Axl's chin in her hand and stroked his cheek gently. My stomach seemed to twist and churn inside me as I watched the two. It wasn't long before they entered a new-looking white car and drove away without a trace.
My lip started trembling and I sat down on the bottom stair. It wasn't exactly as if Axl had been cheating on me. He had invited me out to dinner as a friend, nothing more. Several times he had said that he didn't want a girlfriend. Was that because he already had one? Ugh, I had been so stupid to assume that he was interested in me. I had been much too hopeful. I had so much to learn. Unable to keep the tears back any longer, I let them flow freely. They ran down my cheeks in torrents.
It didn't take long before I heard footsteps behind me. Then a gentle voice said, "Amy?" I was too miserable to figure out who the voice belonged to. All I did was nod to show the person it was me. I doubted I would've been able to speak even if I had tried to. Moments later, I felt someone's strong arms wrap around me and pull me against his chest. I leaned into whoever it was, and tried to seek out comfort. That was what a needed most.
A slim finger lifted my chin up ever so slightly and before I could think about what was happening, someone's lips were pressing against mine...and I was kissing back.